Flat display electroluminescent and plasma display devices are well-known and have long been incorporated into computer terminal devices, particularly for portable terminals and for portable computers. Such portable computers are sometimes called "smart" terminals or personal computers or work stations. While such flat screen devices substantially reduce the size of computer terminals, the standard keyboard, key pads, "mice," and other input devices have required that even "portable" terminals be relatively bulky despite the thin screen display.
It is also well-known to provide a touch-sensitive display screen for computer terminals. By touching the screen at or near indicia displayed on the screen, the user can select actions or graphic display portions for further consideration or action. Thus, in response to a touch, a command can be selected from a menu for execution, a graphical element can be selected for enlargement, movement or replication, or a data file can be selected for processing. Such touch-responsive selections have the disadvantage, however, of being totally dependent on the specific application for which they were designed. General purpose input devices, such as typewriter-type keyboards, were therefore also necessary for generalized inputting.